Unwelcome Dinner Guests
by J.C. Banister
Summary: After leaving the Dread Isle, Mirai the tactician is taught an unexpected lesson in hope from everyone's favorite axeweilding, bluehaired lordling. My first fanfic on this site. NO FLAMES!


_This is my first "published' fanfiction. I've written about six or something like that that I've never put up. Check my profile if you want the exact information. Well...I wrote this story last summer when I was really depressed. I polished it up to turn in for a class project so I figured I might as well turn it in, right? Anyway, I apologize for this being pretty poorly written. I appreciate criticism but NO FLAMES! Thanks in advance!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem. I kind of own Mirai but the whole tactian idea still belongs to the makers of the game. I don't make any money off of this in any way, shape, or form._

It was warm and humid. It would have been bright and sunny as well if the sun hadn't been already setting. As it was, the streams of piercing golden light slanted against everything in its path, lengthening shadows and creating a shimmering golden bridge of brilliance over the surface of the ocean leading to the final resting place of the sun, on the horizon. _The horizon…_ Mirai the tactician gazed longingly towards that eternal line of the world's curvature. Just beyond it…her home, the one place she was sure her adventures would never lead her to return to.

She dropped her eyes quickly, bringing herself back to reality, back to a restaurant just off the sea in the port city of Badon. She couldn't bring herself to the meal before her on the table, although she had gone against her own conscience in spending so much gold on a prepared meal when she could have easily provided for herself. She concentrated on her slender white hands folded in her lap. They didn't look like the hands that directed an army. Not in the slightest.

She leaned forward a little, just enough for her loosely curled, red-brown hair to fall over her face. Her eyes, of the exact same shade, closed in thought as she raised her hands to set her slim fingers along either side of her nose, setting her index fingers in the innermost corners of her eyes and steepling her fingers over the bridge of her nose. As she did so, her fingers brushed against the small bead that hung from a chain around her head to rest gently in the center of her forehead. Most people would have found the slightly misshapen mahogany bead to be a repulsive piece, but it held sentimental value to the young girl, and the bead's coloring brought out the reddish tint to her eyes which amused her.

She let out a deep sigh and gently massaged her eyes. She was bone-weary and her more empathetic side was demanding her tears. Still, she kept her emotions reigned tight. It would never do to show weakness, even if none of the army were anywhere nearby. Life after leaving her home had grown so blasted difficult, although, as a tactician she wondered how she had ever expected things to be otherwise. So, now she faced a new difficulty. What had at first started as a trip to help an old friend, Lord Eliwood, locate his missing father had turned into something much more, so much more. Now there was this… mysterious Nergal, who sought to rule the world as most demented villains always did, and all the business with Dragon's Gate, the portal to the Dragon Realm he intended to open. Ninian and Nils, the traveling performers who Nergal had some unexplained interest in, were welcome friends, she was sure everyone thought so, but now Eliwood's father lay dead. Now, theirs was a quest of more pressing import and the fate of the world might be on their heads. That was just too much…too much for one teenage girl to handle.

At first, none of it affected her. Stone cold logic was all that had existed for her as she directed them away, back to Fargus's ship. It was only once they had left Dread Isle and everyone else had seemingly numbed to the events of their fight that Mirai finally allowed herself to be human again. Their ship carried two bodies and a cloud of sadness back to the mainland. There was no victory. There was no enlightenment. What had they achieved? They'd become aware that everything they knew and loved was poised in a possibly very perilous position. They'd nearly brought on a veritable apocalypse in their ignorance, but then they'd thwarted it in the end. No…they didn't thwart it…probably they'd only _delayed_ it. She remembered thinking bitterly of the cost they had paid for such an empty reward. Her friend Matthew's lover, Leila…she had died for them. Lord Elbert, Eliwood's father…he had been killed because they…no, _she_…because she failed to properly assess the situation. Eliwood and Matthew both had brushed it off, saying that there was nothing that could have been done. Yet, they still grieved…and she was unworthy to do the same. She couldn't shake the feeling that _somehow_, if she had but _known_, if she had only _thought_…those lives and this pain could have been spared. It all fell on her in the end. She was the tactician. No one could ever tell her otherwise.

She lowered her hands and held them instead against the small scar on her collarbone, usually concealed by her bright green cloak. Inwardly, she was twisting around herself with pain. Outwardly, her face was placid. That was the way it would always have to be. She might not be a warrior like her dear friends Eliwood or Lady Lyndis, who had saved her life from bandits not a year ago, but she still had to be strong for those who were not. If that meant she would have to be no more than a tactician's statue, so be it.

A loud thump jolted her out of her thoughts as someone sat heavily across from her at the table on the outdoor balcony of the Badon Café. Mirai jumped, startled, and grasped the armrests of her chair to counter her initial response of jumping to her feet. Her brow furrowed to see a certain muscular, dark-haired, axe-fighting lord seated at her table. Lord Hector, younger brother to Marquess Ostia and Eliwood's best friend. She had never been on entirely friendly terms with the man and neither had Lyn, until very recently. She still wouldn't say she hated him…they just weren't friends. He just happened to be the last person in the world she wanted to see right now. Hector said nothing for a minute, but reached over and grabbed a handful of salted potato wedges from her plate and casually ate them.

"Hm. Your food's getting cold," he commented leisurely. Mirai just blinked. Such nerve! Well, he wasn't a sight for sore eyes, but at least he was company.

"Thank you," she answered in a strained voice. She cut a portion off of her seasoned filet of salmon. It was indeed getting cold, but it still tasted wonderful. Neither of them said anything more for a moment. She let out a light breath.

"Hector…I'm not very good at beating around the bush. Why are you talking to me?" she asked almost in exasperation. Hector just shrugged.

"Everyone else is busy," he answered bluntly. Mirai raised arched black brows. That was Hector alright, blunt to a fault with absolutely no consideration over his words.

"Ah…of course," she replied airily. Hector's look instantly clouded.

"What?" he questioned cluelessly. Mirai just shook her head, dismissing the situation.

"How is Eliwood?" she asked, voice gentling as her thoughts returned to their dark route, thoughts of Eliwood leading her back to memories of his father's death. Hector sighed.

"I…I don't know. I haven't gone back to check on him yet," he said distractedly. Mirai wrinkled her nose.

"Is he not your best friend? You would go to him if this were truly so! He's just lost his father and you're his best friend!" she reprimanded roughly. Hector glowered.

"Eliwood knows as well as you do that I can't say what I mean in situations like this. It's better if I keep my distance. I've said what I could already," he excused equally roughly. Mirai just looked out to sea again.

"If that's your belief, my lord…" she dismissed again. Hector just snorted and leaned forward to confront the tactician.

"Well, what would you have me do!?" he snapped. Mirai bristled, but kept her calm, as she had been trained.

"I made no suggestion that I would have you do anything different," she evaded, regretting the appearance of this unwelcome dinner guest.

"Ha!" Hector scoffed as he helped himself to more of her potatoes. "You're trying to accuse me of being a thoughtless friend! Yet, here we sit. My book is plainly open on the table, but no one knows a single thing about you. You never talk about yourself or make any attempt to let people know you. Not even Lyn and you're like a sister to her. From where I'm sitting, it sounds like you're the one who's thoughtless," he retorted. Mirai felt her lips tighten.

"I made no such remark. If I had any bad claims to you it would be simply that you're a thoughtless _person_, friend or no." Hector scooted his chair back in indignation.

"Pah! Devil woman! You are in a perfectly wretched mood this evening!" he bellowed. Mirai scooted her chair back too.

"Hector. You are a lout. If you have nothing more to say, leave me," she said fiercely. The two glared at each other as if daring the other to make a move. Suddenly, Hector laughed, full-bodied and deep. Mirai opened her mouth slightly in surprise. That certainly wasn't the reaction she had been expecting.

"A lout, am I? That's not the first time I've heard that!" She just frowned slightly as he continued to laugh. "I just never expected to hear that from you. I've never heard you say anything bad about anybody!" Mirai colored slightly, unnerved by his amusement, and looked down.

"I…I apologize. I suppose I'm just…edgy…that's all…" she offered. Hector ended his laughter with a more serious and even thoughtful look on his face.

"It's bothering all of us, you know. We're all uptight right now…" Mirai inwardly winced and words slipped out before she could catch herself.

"…But none of you are to blame…" Hector sat up straight and just stared at her.

"And you think you are?" he questioned in disbelief. When the tactician made no response, Hector whistled his astonishment. "Well…that's kind of like hearing Rebecca has suicidal tendencies." He scratched his head absently, obviously thrown for a loop. The tactician's mind filled instantly with an image of the ever-laughing archer sitting in an obvious sulk, eyeing a knife. Mirai couldn't help it. She smiled. Hector raised his eyebrows. "That seems a little more normal," he pointed out. Mirai just shook her head and looked down at the tabletop. Then, hesitantly, she cut her piece of salmon in half.

"Here. If you're going to sit with me, you should at least have something to eat," she said, indicating the piece she had cut. Hector just blinked and then started to get up.

"I'm not gonna eat your food. You already look half-starved as it is," he said gruffly. Mirai just barely rolled her eyes.

"Hector. Please." The axe fighter just set his jaw, but after a minute, surprisingly, gave in.

"I don't care for fish," was all he said, but he accepted her offer all the same. They ate in silence for several long minutes. He cleared his throat awkwardly. Mirai looked up, realizing the silence was making him uncomfortable. She searched for something to say and realized that she didn't _have_ much to say. She'd never really sat down to talk with the young lord before.

"How…how're you holding up?" she asked for lack of anything else.

"I'm bothered but…well…we'll just deal with it," he answered simply. Mirai shook her head.

"We'll just deal with it," she echoed. She wished it was as simple as that. Unfortunately she served two very naïve young men. It didn't help that she knew she herself was also a bit naïve. As Mirai grew silent and pensive again, Hector took a bite of the fish and shook his head.

"Maybe you should think about something else for awhile," he suggested in an almost Eliwood-like way. The tactician just blinked and decided to disregard the man's tone.

"I don't know…I thought I was doing a bloody good job of that," she said trying to smile. Hector didn't seem to find it humorous. "Why don't you distract me," she suggested. The axe fighting lord frowned slightly.

"Hey! That's not what I…oh, fine…" He just stared at her for a long minute. "So what about you?" he asked. Mirai narrowed her eyes slightly.

"What _about _me?" she returned suspiciously.

"How are _you_ holding up?" he asked uncomfortably. Mirai just bit the inside of her cheek.

"Fine," she answered tartly. Hector easily downed the rest of his allotted piece of fish.

"Which would be great and require nothing further to say, except for the fact that you are obviously lying," he dismissed. Mirai just narrowed her eyes and stared hard at him for a moment. He didn't bother to more than glance up to face her scrutiny. "You want to know the real reason I came to talk to you? It's because I chanced upon you sitting here brooding instead of eating. I hate brooding. Just smile…or…something." Mirai closed her eyes slowly and opened them again, Hector's presence wearying her.

"You're not being a very good distraction," she said as lightly as she could manage. "Why don't you go tell Eliwood to just smile or something?" Hector offered her one of his glorious scowls but checked himself.

"_That_ would really be insensitive," he commented. She smiled again.

"Then who's to say that you're not still being insensitive?" The young lord rubbed his forehead.

"Look. I know that I'm going about this the wrong way. I don't claim to be an eloquent speaker. I don't claim to know much about other people's feelings. What I do know is that you can't dwell on things forever. Bad things happen, right? They always have and they always will. Loss is part of life. People are born and people die. That sounds like an awful thing to say, right? I mean, sure it hurts and it always will. These things…happen though. Eliwood, Matthew, everyone knows that. They have their grief and then they move on. It makes no sense for you to be so hard on yourself. It isn't your fault. It was Nergal who did this. If the blame has to fall on anyone, let it fall on him. That's why we're gonna stop him and we can't do it without you, Mirai. If you give yourself to despair, where does that leave us? So, c'mon. There's always hope. If anyone can find it, it's you." Mirai just sat still, her mouth half-open with shock.

"Hector…" Lord Hector seemed slightly embarrassed and just stood up.

"I'm going to check on Eliwood now." Mirai watched him head off into the gathering dusk, finding a new respect for him. A lout he most surely was, but he knew more than he let on. In spite of herself, she felt better, hopeful even. Glancing at her empty plate she realized she had enjoyed her awkward meal, more than she had ever anticipated.

She reached out and delicately lifted her crystal goblet of wine. Rather than take a drink, she lifted it in the direction that Hector had taken. When she got to her feet, it was like a burden had been lifted from her. She felt a genuine smile come to her face for the first time in what felt like forever.

"To unwelcome dinner guests…" she said quietly before draining the glass.

_I hope you liked it! Please, I beg you, LEAVE A REVIEW! I put this up here purely for feedback. I really appreciate it!_


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